Microbiome and the Skin: Beauty and the Beast

The presentation will focus on physiological colonization of the human body and factors that are influencing the colonization. The current understanding of the microbiome and the interaction of the skin and the microbiome will be reviewed. Furthermore, the impact of the microbiome on different skin conditions has been studied in several skin diseases.
It is now widely accepted that a broad bacterial colonization of the skin is necessary to maintain a balanced immune responses. Colonization or overgrowth with pathological bacteria however, might induce changes in skin physiology and leads to skin diseases.
Cosmetic products are in direct contact with the skin and therefore have the potential to influence the skin microbiome both in a positive and a negative way. We will discuss the impact of the current knowledge of the skin microbiome on the development of new skin care and cosmetic product.